26 November 2005

More snow forecast in big freeze

Many people across Northern Ireland have been coping with the effects of last night's icy weather.

Gritters were out throughout the night and were still salting some main roads on Friday morning.

The Met Office has warned that more sleet and snow is forecast for Friday and through to the weekend.

The heaviest snow fell on Thursday night on higher ground, with lighter snow on lower roads becoming more severe through the night.

There were sub-zero temperatures in some places across Northern Ireland.

Extreme care

Road Service workers have been out, salting roads and ploughing where necessary but they say untreated roads are hazardous.

Spokesman Colin Brown said they had been helped by "a very accurate weather forecast".

"Our winter service teams have been working very hard and continuously salting the scheduled network from lunchtime yesterday, Thursday, right through the evening, the night and indeed this morning," he said.

"So the main roads, the scheduled roads are passable.

"We are certainly prepared for something similar again today, into tonight and into tomorrow (Saturday) morning.

"So we're well prepared for another fairly heavy night of activity salting the network."

The police are advising motorists to take extreme care, slow down and keep safe distances.

Some ferry services have been cancelled, though at the moment the airports are operating as normal.

Meanwhile, the Met Office said another band of snow was moving in from the north.